While studying for my "drash" (sermon) for a lay people service at our Reform congregation, I found that Hebron has a much larger historical significance than I knew. First of all, it is the first piece of land that Abraham bought in Israel some 4000 years ago; also the Machpela in Hebron is the burial site of all the Patriarchs and matriarchs, except Rachel; Then it was King David's first capital for seven and half years some 3000 years ago.
In more recent times it has been an important city for hundreds of years for Jews, right behind Jerusalem. The Arabs expel Jews from the city by murdering some 70 Jews in the pogrom of 1929, (when my sister in law's family escaped by pure coincident,) and as a result all the Jews left. A clear murderous Ethnic Cleaning. The Jews returned in 1931 to Hebron to reclaim their rightful place, but the pogrom of 1936 drove them out again, Ethnic Cleaning by use of force. Only after the 1967 Six Days War Jews were able to return and live in Hebron.

To somewhat my surprise, my liberal, Reform Rabbi told us in a Friday service that if Israelis and Jews claim historical rights to Israel, Hebron is definitely one of the most important places that we can lay this historical claim to. "If not Hebron then what. Definitely not to Tel Aviv or Haifa”.

The response of the congregates was very warm and supportive, while in the past many of this group would have said in the past that Jews should leave Hebron to reduce tension with the Palestinians and move towards peace.
What gives the Palestinians right to use Ethnic Cleansing to claim land as they have done many places before?

Here is how the Palestinians treat holy places important to Jews:
The Matriarch Rachel burial site Kever Rachel was destroyed a few years ago by the Palestinians immediately after it was given to them to guard as a holy place- their police watching the destruction with a smile. The purpose of surrendering the site was to reduce the danger to Israeli guards and under the Arafat promise that they will keep it safe. Each and every stone was turn down and scattered so, they Palestinians said, the Jews would not be able to reconstruct it back ever again!
The Jordanian forces who held the Old City of Jerusalem destroyed all synagogues there, but one, during their occupation from 1948 till 1967

I am disappointed that this information is not widely distributed in Israel and here in the US so Jews and others understand that the Orthodox families that decided to live in Hebron are not, as the typical saying goes, are there "just to spite the Palestinians" and disturb the peace process.

Matania